is a Japanese professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player for

Utsunomiya Brex Utsunomiya Brex is a Japanese professional basketball team based in Tochigi Prefecture, Japan. After winning the JBL 2 in 2008, the team played in the National Basketball League (Japan), National Basketball League. Previous team names include: T ...

of the

B.League The B.League is a men's professional basketball league in Japan. The league is operated by the Japan Professional Basketball League and was formed as a result of a merger between the National Basketball League that was operated by the FIBA-affi ...

. A

point guard The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the Basketball positions, five positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position and is usually the shortest player ...

, Tabuse is and . He was the first Japanese-born player to appear in a

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

(NBA) game. Tabuse has enjoyed popularity in Japan since his high school playing days, when he led his school to three straight national championships, and has been referred to as "the

Michael Jordan Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963), also known by his initials MJ, is an American businessman and former professional basketball player, who is currently a minority owner of the Charlotte Hornets of the National Basketball Ass ...

of Japan" for his celebrity status.

Career

Early years

Tabuse, who was born in

Yokohama is the List of cities in Japan, second-largest city in Japan by population as well as by area, and the country's most populous Municipalities of Japan, municipality. It is the capital and most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a popu ...

and grew up in what he calls "a sports family", began playing basketball at the age of nine, because he was not good at

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

and not interested in

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

. He attended

Noshiro Technical High School is a High school in Japan, high school located in Noshiro, Akita Prefecture, Akita, Japan. It was established in 1912 and is best known for its powerhouse basketball team that won national championships 58 times. Notable alumni *:tl:Shinji Ak ...

Akita Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Provinces and prefectures" in ; "Tōhoku" in . Its population is estimated 915,691 as of 1 August 2023 and its geographi ...

, where he led his team to national championships all three years he was there and lost only a single game. After graduation from high school in March 1999, Tabuse chose to enroll at Brigham Young University-Hawaii for its English as an International Language program. He sat out his first two seasons at BYUH because of eligibility rules and played one season before turning pro. He averaged 7.6 points per game and led the

Pacific West Conference The Pacific West Conference (also known as the PacWest) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. Member institutions are located in California and Hawaii. T ...

with 6.6 assists. Tabuse returned to join the

Toyota Alvark Alvark Tokyo is a Japanese professional basketball team located in Tokyo. The team, which is sponsored by Toyota, currently plays in the Japanese B.League. Until 2000, the team was known as the Toyota Pacers. Founded as Toyota Pacers in 1948, ...

, with whom he won the Japan Basketball League Rookie of the Year award for the 2002–03 season.

NBA, ABA and NBA D-League

After leaving the Toyota Alvark in 2003, Tabuse became the first Japanese national to play in the NBA's summer league, playing six games in the Rocky Mountain Revue for the

Dallas Mavericks The Dallas Mavericks (often referred to as the Mavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Divisi ...

, averaging 4.5 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 13 minutes per game. Tabuse's first attempt at making it to the NBA made the headlines in Japan, and drew large media attention. On September 27 of that year, Tabuse joined the

Denver Nuggets The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA), W ...

' training camp,Denver Nuggets Transactions 2002-03
/ref> but he was waived on October 24, before the start of the regular season. Tabuse spent the 2003–04 season with the

American Basketball Association The American Basketball Association (ABA) was a major professional basketball league that operated for nine seasons from 1967 to 1976. The upstart ABA operated in direct competition with the more established National Basketball Association thr ...

champion

Long Beach Jam Long may refer to: Measurement * Long, characteristic of something of great duration * Long, characteristic of something of great length * Longitude (abbreviation: long.), a geographic coordinate * Longa (music), note value in early music mens ...

, averaging 5.3 points, 2.4 rebounds, and a team-high 6.3 assists per game in 18 games. In

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

, Tabuse joined the

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA), We ...

' training camp and made the opening night roster. He scored seven points in his first NBA game against the

Atlanta Hawks The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Easte ...

on November 3, 2004, becoming on that day the first Japanese player ever to play in an NBA regular season game. However, he was waived by the Suns on December 16, 2004, after playing in four games and rejoined the Jam for the remainder of the ABA season. Suns assistant coach

Marc Iavaroni Marcus John Iavaroni (born September 15, 1956) is an American former professional basketball player and former head coach of the Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He has also served as an assistant coach for several ...

said of Tabuse: "I liked his energy, I liked his courage." Those four games with Phoenix ended up being Tabuse's only playing time in the NBA throughout his professional basketball career. His 4th and final game in the NBA was played on December 15, 2004, in a 108 - 86 win over the

Utah Jazz The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference. Since the 1991–92 season, the ...

. Tabuse only played for 2 minutes and recorded no stats. In

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

, Tabuse signed with the

Los Angeles Clippers The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. The ...

, but was waived before the start of the regular season. That fall, Tabuse appeared on a limited edition cover of ''

NBA Live ''NBA Live'' is a series of basketball video games that was published by EA Sports. The series, which debuted in 1994, is the successor to the previous ''NBA Playoffs'' and ''NBA Showdown (video game), NBA Showdown'' series. Beginning in the la ...

'' video game in Japan, even though he did not play a single NBA regular season game. That year, he was drafted by the

Albuquerque Thunderbirds Albuquerque ( ; ), also known as ABQ, Burque, the Duke City, and in the past 'the Q', is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico, and the county seat of Bernalillo County. Founded in 1706 as ' by Santa Fe de Nuevo México gover ...

of the

NBA Development League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of the 2024–25 season, ...

(D-League) and averaged 6.5 points and 4.0 assists in 34 games before he was waived on March 16, 2006.

Michael Cooper Michael Jerome Cooper (born April 15, 1956), nicknamed "Coop", is an American basketball coach and former player. He played for the Los Angeles Lakers during his entire career in the National Basketball Association (NBA), winning five NBA champ ...

, former NBA player and Tabuse's coach with the

, said of him, "He automatically changes the game because of his quickness and distributing the ball. He's the best fundamental player I've seen around in a long time." In 2006, Tabuse decided to forsake an opportunity to play with the Japanese national team in the world championships that took place between August 19 to September 3 across five cities in Japan, and instead play with the Dallas Mavericks' summer league team. In November 2006, Tabuse was drafted into the NBA D-League with the 11th pick of the third round (35th overall) by the

Bakersfield Jam Bakersfield is a city in and the county seat of Kern County, California, United States. The city covers about near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley, which is located in the Central Valley region. Bakersfield's population as of the ...

. In November 2007, Tabuse was cut by the Bakersfield Jam before the 2007–08 season. On December 8, 2007, Tabuse was acquired by the Anaheim Arsenal of the D-League, and he made his debut on December 9 against the Bakersfield Jam, scoring 4 points and adding 3 assists in almost 13 minutes of play. For the 2007–08 season, Tabuse averaged 4.5 points, 1.2 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 39 games. In July 2008, Tabuse joined the

New Jersey Nets New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 1 ...

' squad in the Orlando Pro Summer League.

Return to Japan

In August 2008, Tabuse signed for

Japan Basketball League The Japan Basketball League (JBL) was a professional basketball league in Japan. It made up the top-tier of basketball in Japan alongside the bj league, Japan's other basketball competition, with no promotion and relegation between bj and the J ...

side

Link Tochigi Brex Utsunomiya Brex is a Japanese professional basketball team based in Tochigi Prefecture, Japan. After winning the JBL 2 in 2008, the team played in the National Basketball League. Previous team names include: Tochigi Brex and Link Tochigi Brex. ...

. Tochigi's head coach Mitsuhiko Kato was in charge of the basketball club of

when Tabuse played for the school. In April 2009, Tabuse was named to the 22-man roster for the

Japan national basketball team The Japan national basketball team, also known as Akatsuki Japan (), is the national team representing Japan in international basketball competitions and is administered by the Japan Basketball Association (JBA), (Japanese: 日本バスケッ ...

. The team played at the FIBA Asia Championship for Men. In May 2009,

ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...

reported that Tabuse would leave the national team after receiving an invitation by the

to compete in their summer camp. In 2010, his team won the JBL Basketball League championship game. Tabuse was named Finals MVP. Tabuse's team would later win their second Japanese League championship in 2017 under the rebranded Japanese Professional Basketball League. Tabuse continues to play basketball professionally into his forties.

Career statistics

Regular season

, - , align="left" , 2004-05 , align="left" , Phoenix , 4 , , 0 , , 4.3 , , .167 , , 1.00 , , 1.00 , , 1.0 , , 0.8 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 1.8 , -

D-League

, - , align="left" , 2005–2006 , align="left" , ABQ , 34 , , 4 , , 23.2 , , .406 , , .313 , , .780 , , 2.1 , , 4.0 , , 1.2 , , 0.0 , , 1.21 , , 6.5 , - , align="left" , 2006–2007 , align="left" ,

BAK Bak or BAK may refer to: People * Bak (surname), including a list of people with the name * Bąk (surname), a Polish surname, including a list of people with the name * Park (Korean surname), sometimes also Pak or Bak * Bek (sculptor) or Bak ...

, 44 , , 3 , , 18.7 , , .412 , , .263 , , .773 , , 1.4 , , 3.5 , , 0.9 , , 0.0 , , 1.20 , , 6.1 , - , align="left" , 2007–2008 , align="left" , ANA , 39 , , 0 , , 13.0 , , .374 , , .341 , , .810 , , 1.2 , , 2.0 , , 0.9 , , 0.0 , , 1.07 , , 5.7

JBL

, - , align="left" , 2008–2009 , align="left" , Tochigi , 33 , , 33 , , 34.2 , , .475 , , .226 , , .742 , , 3.5 , , 5.6 , , 2.3 , , 0.1 , , 2.24 , , 11.0 , - , align="left" , 2009–2010 , align="left" , Tochigi , 26 , , -- , , 26.6 , , .551 , , .360 , , .803 , , 3.1 , , 3.5 , , 2.0 , , 0.0 , , 1.46 , , 11.8 , - , align="left" , 2010–2011 , align="left" , Tochigi , 31 , , -- , , 28.8 , , .455 , , .375 , , .792 , , 2.6 , , 3.4 , , 1.3 , , 0.1 , , 0.97 , , 8.7 , - , align="left" , 2011–2012 , align="left" , Tochigi , 39, , , , 20.9, , .488, , .156, , .741, , 2.3, , 2.6, , 1.2, , 0.1, , 1.5, , 6.4 , - , align="left" , 2012–2013 , align="left" , Tochigi , 22, , , , 26.8, , .476, , .188, , .879, , 2.4, , 2.7, , 0.8, , 0.0, , 1.5, , 10.4

NBL

, - , align="left" , 2013–2014 , align="left" , Tochigi , 54 , , , , 32.8 , , .441 , , .330 , , .858 , , 4.2 , , 5.9 , , 2.0 , , 0.1 , , 2.1 , , 15.6 , - , align="left" , 2014–15 , align="left" , Tochigi , 51, , , , 26.9, , .471, , .250, , .814, , 2.2, , 4.5, , 1.7, , 0.1, , 1.7, , 10.3 , - , align="left" , 2015–16 , align="left" , Tochigi , 50, , , , 23.7, , .484, , .310, , .826, , 2.0, , 3.3, , 1.2, , 0.0, , 1.0, , 7.0

B.League

Regular season

, - , align="left" , B1 2016–17 , align="left" , Tochigi , 59, , 59, , 20.8, , 49.7, , 27.8, , 83.9, , 1.8, , 3.4, , 1.0, , 0.1, , 0.9, , 7.4 , - , align="left" , B1 2017–18 , align="left" , Tochigi , 60, , 60, , 17.9, , 47.7, , 13.6, , 86.2, , 1.7, , 2.7, , 0.8, , 0.0, , 0.8, , 5.4 , -

References

External links

*
Official siteNBA.com D-League profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tabuse, Yuta 1980 births Living people Albuquerque Thunderbirds players Alvark Tokyo players Anaheim Arsenal players Bakersfield Jam players Basketball players at the 2010 Asian Games BYU–Hawaii Seasiders men's basketball players Japanese men's basketball players Utsunomiya Brex players Long Beach Jam players NBA players from Japan People from Kanazawa, Yokohama Phoenix Suns players Point guards Sportspeople from Yokohama Basketball players from Kanagawa Prefecture Undrafted NBA players Asian Games competitors for Japan Hawaii people of Japanese descent

Career

Early years

NBA, ABA and NBA D-League

Return to Japan

Career statistics

Regular season

D-League

JBL

NBL

B.League

Regular season

See also

References

External links